The implant procedures

There are different techniques that can be used for the surgical placement of the dental implant. It depends on the particular conditions of the case, doctor’s preferences, and dental implant system used. First let's take a look on a classical 2 step implant surgery, which is the most common technique used for dental implant placement.

Classical 2 step implant surgery  

1. Doctor will make a cut in you gum along the crest of the bone and push it to the sides to access the bone.
2. Using different sizes of special drills, doctor will drill inside the bone to make a path for an implant. Doctor will start with thin drills, gradually moving to thicker ones. The diameter of last drill will be slight smaller than the diameter of the selected implant. Surgical drills have a canal inside its body to allow constant water irrigation, which is necessary to cool down the bone, preventing it from overheating
3. Implant is screwed inside the bone. Necessary x-rays can be taken during the procedure
4. A surgical cover screw is inserted into the top if the implant to prevent bone and tissue to grow inside the implant.
5. Gum is placed back and sutures are used.
6. Doctor will give you all necessary prescriptions and instructions. In 7-10 days, you come back for suture removal and follow up. There will be several other follow-up visits to monitor the healing process until such time that the implant is ready to be restored with a prosthetic.

Stage 2 –Uncovering the implant

 After the doctor has concluded that implant integration is complete, the dental implant has to be uncovered:

• Local anesthesia is administered.

·  A small incision is done in the gum, allowing doctor to unscrew the surgical cover screw.

·  Healing cover placed instead of the surgical screw, projects above the gum preventing it from closing over the implant. Sutures  are placed to hold the gum back in place.

·  One week later doctor will remove stitches, and after few more days of healing implant is ready for restoration.